Just Be Yourself, Clumsy Smurf
"Just Be Yourself, Clumsy Smurf" is a story that takes place in the EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf story series. Plot Summary Brainy is noticing something about his friend Clumsy, that he seems rather reluctant in laughing about himself whenever Brainy tries to explain to his fellow Smurfs how Clumsy could never understand anything his fellow Smurfs tell him because he wasn't given the brains to understand anything. Empath senses that Clumsy is hurting inside from all the embarrassment he had to endure in being made to look like a complete idiot, and Papa Smurf sees that all of this is starting to make Clumsy sick, though he continues to insist that nothing is wrong. Empath decides that it's time to have a private talk with Clumsy, and during the talk it is revealed -- in a voice that's completely different from what the Smurfs thought was Clumsy's "normal voice" -- that Clumsy has been living the lie of making himself look like a complete idiot so he could have friends. Although he is still Clumsy, he tells Empath, he really was so shy and insecure about himself that he didn't know how to relate to anybody, so he made himself sound "dumb and fun" which at first he actually enjoyed being because it helped him become friends with Brainy, whom he always admired. But now, Empath sees that Clumsy is getting tired of the whole "dumb and fun" act because nobody is accepting him for who he really is, but rather what they see him as. Empath tries to encourage Clumsy that maybe it's time for him to start being his true self for a change, but Clumsy isn't sure of how to go about doing that since he's so used to being "dumb and fun" around other Smurfs. His attempts to try showing his true self, however, only result in the other Smurfs looking at him rather strangely, as if they had no idea what Clumsy is even doing. Finally, Clumsy decides to just come out and tell his friend Brainy the truth about himself, which makes Brainy shocked to find out that his friend wasn't as "dumb and fun" as he thought, and that made him feel betrayed by Clumsy's revelation. The other Smurfs caught wind of this revelation and also feel as if they don't know who Clumsy really is anymore. Empath, Papa Smurf, and Tapper try to console Clumsy with the fact that now the mask has been removed, he can start to feel better about himself. But all Clumsy can see now is that he has no friends left, including Brainy. A little later, as Clumsy mutters to himself that maybe he was better off being "dumb and fun" as he goes into Tapper's Tavern, his fellow Smurfs greet him inside, surprising him by saying they like Clumsy no matter who he really is. He is even further surprised when Brainy shows up with something Clumsy has always wanted to read -- the latest copy of Quotations Of Brainy Smurf. While most of the Smurfs wonder why someone like Clumsy would ever want to read anything of Brainy Smurf, Clumsy says that he likes listening to Brainy, even if he doesn't understand everything that he says, and now he has something he could read from his friend as well and not be ashamed of being anything but "dumb and fun". Notes * The story serves as a sort of bridge between the earlier Bill Callaway interpretation of Clumsy from the cartoon show and the later Anton Yelchin interpretation from the 2011 Smurfs movie, with the cartoon show interpretation being portrayed as a mask for the latter interpretation. Category:Empath the Luckiest Smurf stories